Trout in the Classroom Program

Alameda Creek Alliance Trout in the Classroom Program

The Alameda Creek Alliance sponsors a Trout In the Classroom program, to provide a unique learning experience for students attending schools within the Alameda Creek watershed. Students are given the opportunity to witness Rainbow Trout hatching right before their eyes in a special aquarium located in their very own classroom. Students monitor the fish’s progress as they develop, start swimming in search for food and exploring their new environment.

Teachers supplement the experience with classroom watershed curriculum and activities involving science and environmental issues. The experience culminates with a field trip to a local reservoir where the students bid their precious little piscine pets farewell, grant them their freedom and wish them a happy life, as they watch with obvious emotion as their little aquatic friends swim away (trout release locations comply with state permits).

The program is offered at little or no cost to teachers or school districts. Alameda Creek Alliance members manage the program as sponsors on a voluntary basis, supply the aquariums and all related equipment, and provide technical expertise, assistance and support for the teachers. The Department of Fish and Game regulates the program and provides the trout eggs. Dedicated and enthusiastic classroom teachers are the heart of the program. They attend a workshop to learn about trout, their life cycle, habitat, and related requirements, the aquarium, plus relevant classroom curriculum and activities.

The Trout In the Classroom program has proven to be a very effective teaching tool; the students quickly bond with the fish and focus on learning all they can about trout, their life cycle, their habitat, and what they need to survive in the wild. The students and teachers alike love the program.

The Alameda Creek Alliance is proud to sponsor this program, and our members who are involved are richly rewarded by the enthusiasm of students seeking out more knowledge about the fish and the environment they live in. The program provides a very effective introduction to watersheds, their characteristics, and conservation issues. It cultivates a sense of stewardship in the students that will hopefully develop over time and help them mature into dedicated stewards of our streams and environment.

To volunteer, sign up your classroom, or for more information about our Trout In the Classroom program, contact Pete Alexander at: fishous AT comcast DOT net

Please read our May 2014 article about our successful Trout in the Classroom program: "Developing Creek Stewards"

More information about the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's Classroom Aquarium Education Program